Shelby Township officials say they are choosing to ignore a letter from the Freedom From Religion Foundation criticizing the recent addition of “so help me God” to the township’s standard oath by Clerk Stanley Grot.

“I have been directed by township attorney Rob Huth that the Freedom from Religion opinion on Mr. Grot’s addition to our oath is without merit and needs no official response,” Shelby Township Supervisor Richard Stathakis announced at the June 17 Board of Trustees meeting.

The letter, dated June 16, states the FFRF was “contacted by a concerned Shelby Township resident who informs us that the standard oath given to all Shelby Township public officials was recently altered to include the words ‘so help me God.’”

It goes on to state that “Article Six of the United States Constitution prohibits states and the federal government from requiring any kind of religious test for public office” and refers to a U.S. Supreme Court decision that requiring a religious oath is a violation of the first and 14th amendments to the Constitution.

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“A secular oath, as was the case before Mr. Grot decided to add ‘so help me God,’ is more appropriate, and conforms to the practices of both the surrounding communities and the state,” wrote Annie Laurie Gaylor, co-president of the Foundation. “A secular oath offends and excludes no one, therefore should be preferred.”

In a statement delivered at the June 17 meeting, Grot defended his decision to amend the oath.

“We are a nation built on Judeo-Christian values, and political correctness should not play a role in invoking our God’s name in our daily lives,” he said. “We are a very tolerant nation of other religions, other customs and other traditions, but we should not change simply because the minority desire it.”

However, officials with the FFRF have argued that while the nation may have been built on “Judeo-Christian values,” it has evolved into a “mix of the religious and non-religious.”

“Officially adding the words ‘so help me God’ to an oath taken by public officials serves no purpose and fails to promote the secular goals of government,” Gaylor wrote. “The words, despite supposedly being optional, only serve to isolate and ostracize those members of the community who do not identify as religious.”

However, Grot maintains the amended oath is not intended to discriminate against anyone.

“The words ‘so help me God’ were added as an option, so if the person doesn’t want to repeat after me, they can skip that part,” he said. “That’s their option. We’re not forcing anyone to accept our religion.”

The FFRF also made headlines in 2011 when it sued the City of Warren alleging Mayor Jim Fouts illegally endorsed religion by allowing a service club to display a nativity scene while denying the FFRF’s request to place its own sign nearby. The city eventually prevailed in that action, which made its way to the United States Court of Appeals.

The FFRF in 2008 also pressured the Macomb County Road Commission to force the removal of a nativity scene placed in the median of Mound Road, near Chicago Road, in Warren.